


SHRINE AT THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN

by arataka



Category: Death Note (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Gen, Not Beta Read, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, kind of comedic and ironic in the sad way. yknow?, referenced character death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-25
Updated: 2021-01-25
Packaged: 2021-03-17 10:27:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28972809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arataka/pseuds/arataka
Summary: light has no plans for what he'll do after becoming god; he has his hands full already. but when you come to pray to the gods at the top of the mountain, one must realize that there is no way other than down.“Apples are delicious. There’ll always be more.” Ryuk swallows an apple from the bowl Misa put out an hour ago. “One day, there’ll be no bad people.”Light grins. “And that day will be wonderful.”
Relationships: Ryuk & Yagami Light
Comments: 3
Kudos: 14





	SHRINE AT THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN

**Author's Note:**

> i finished death note today. [cries.] this might not be 100% canon compliant and ic because i haven't read the entire manga yet. thank you so much for reading and i hope you enjoy!
> 
> [my twiter](https://twitter.com/hoennian)

The television flickers in his darkened room. There is only the sound of a pen etching into paper, the monotonous tone those newscasters use as they report on the five-day forecast, and Ryuk’s laughing. 

_Huhuhu,_ Ryuk says. To Light he sounds like Goofy from the Mickey Mouse cast, but if Goofy was ugly and even more annoying. _Huhuhu,_ he goes on, chomping on Light’s bowl of apples. He entertains the thought of asking his mother for grapes instead- Ryuk’s least favorite fruit- whenever his hand strains from writing and he reaches into an already-empty bowl. 

The newscasters finish their forecast, and Light lets out a sigh of relief in return. Not only are the weathermen painfully inaccurate, but it is late in the night and people- including gods in the making- need sleep. Light swallows a yawn as he starts writing again, as the names and faces of newly acquitted criminals flash onto the flickering television screen. 

“Light,” Ryuk talks, finally, after eating the very last apple within the entire Yagami household, “What will you do after this all?”

He doesn’t hesitate in his writing— studious and dutiful to his work, whether it is school or delivering judgement onto the masses. “What do you mean?”

“‘ _God of the New World’._ ” Ryuk laughs. Hyuk hyuk hyuk. “What’s after that, anyway? What are you gonna do when you get rid of everyone bad?”

“I’ll have to make sure no other criminals rise from their ashes, or that no other horrible people are born… obviously.” Light scoffs. What a dumb question. “It’ll be less work, so I’d be free to live as the world’s god more often than not.” 

The death god hums. It’s not a hum of satisfaction but instead one of confusion— telling Light that he must anticipate another question, either in the following seconds or days. It angers him, the title of _death god—_ all the shinigami does is bother him, laugh at him, play his video games and eat enough fruit to fuel a farmer’s market. If _Ryuk_ could be a god, then divinity should all but fall into his awaiting hands. 

Ryuk’s question arises. “Wouldn’t that be boring?” 

Humanity has always asked the question, _where do we go after death?_ In Light’s case, he has his answer— he shall go to neither heaven or hell when he dies. Light will die, and that’ll be the end of it. 

Yet Ryuk, a being near immortal who only needs to _write_ to survive, knows the concept of god and immortality better than Light likely ever will. Humanity asks what happens _when_ we die, but what happens if we _don’t?_

Light stiffens. He stops, thankfully, in the moment he is in between writing names. Ryuk had come down to the mortal world in search of a way out from the boredom that comes with immortality, invincibility. 

When _he_ becomes a god, there is no other world for him to turn to when he gets bored. There will be no Death Note coming into his possession when he gets bored, because at one point even judgement might become monotonous to him.

What will he do next, when he’s gotten everything he wanted?

“I… don’t know.”

  
  
  


It is decided: Light will purchase a bird.

“Huuuh?” Ryuk chuckles at him, his head tilting far too sideways, “A _bird?_ What’s it taste like?”

“You cannot eat the bird when I get it, Ryuk,” he says. “It won’t be apple-flavored. It’ll taste like chicken.” He ignores Ryuk’s inquiries on what shrimp tastes like, after he explains that birds taste like chicken, and chicken tastes like shrimp. He has much better things to do, such as becoming the world’s god and buying a bird.

Misa wanted a cat for their new apartment— but cats are secretive, they can do sinister things like knock over your trash or hide the remote and you could never notice until days later. (Maybe that is why Misa likes cats.) Then she suggested a dog, but dogs are either too big for their two bedroom apartment or run around too quickly that Light fears he’ll suffer headache from the blur. 

They settled on a bird. Or rather, Light suggested getting a bird and Misa, simply wanting a pet in general, loved the idea. He wanted a dove— peace bringers, a symbol of motivation for his cause right in their home. 

Now, Light is skimming through the final draft of his shopping list; it was substantial but not over-the-top, almost all of the furniture shopping delegated to Misa. There were two rules: no bright colors, and Misa _must_ buy separate beds. 

“Here, Ryuk.” Light lifts up the notepad a couple inches higher for the shinigami to see. “I have to get the bird, a plant, a corset, maybe a new winter coat…” 

“A _what?”_

Light stares at him. Ah— he makes a mental reminder: q-tips for Ryuk’s clogged ears. Must be so difficult, living in a world made of dust and sand and no q-tips. “A plant. Maybe two… it’ll make the apartment look less suspicious if someone looks into the leaves and finds no secrets there.” 

“No,” Ryuk shakes his head, so hard it spins the whole way round. “The corset. What’d you need a corset for?”

He shrugs. “It’ll be useful one day, I’m sure.” He looks down at the list once more— and writes down _q-tips._ Then, _apples._

Ryuk chuckles above him. “Whatever; it is nice to know that you still want things.” 

How peculiar. How annoying. Of course Light yearns for things; he will still eat food, deliver justice, and need money. But when he becomes god— many of these will dissipate into the open air, all his problems and obstacles will be removed to pave the clearest road. “You always want apples,” Light reminds him, “What is the difference?”

The death god chuckles. Again. He supposes that it is hard for mortals to understand, but what of a mortal who yearns for divinity? For perfection? What succeeds perfection?

“Apples are delicious. There’ll always be more.” Ryuk swallows an apple from the bowl Misa put out an hour ago. “One day, there’ll be no bad people.”

Light grins. “And that day will be wonderful.”

They set off together— to the store, to the pet bird Light wants and the corset and the bag of apples Ryuk finishes before they get back home. 

  
  
  


He can’t bring himself to yell.

His throat hurts; his chest burns and he can barely breathe as he runs and yelling would be detrimental because he knows the other detectives are looking for him. There are no doubts about those facts, because humans are sentimental, and they desire what is familiar to them. 

Humans are sentimental, and even godlings are sentimental, because he cried when his father died before him and he wants to scream for people who would not come. Misa, Takada, Ryuk— he could yell and shout and cry their names to the heavens and they would not save him.

He is their god, and they cannot save him. 

There is this old warehouse, far far away from the warehouse Near bought and ruined him in, but it still gives him the most unnerving chill down his spines. All warehouses are bad, Light thinks in his delirium, just like how all criminals are bad. He trips up the stairs— and he falls.

Halfway up the steps, he falls. He clutches his chest so tightly his fingers quiver, and he imagines that Ryuk is out there laughing because finally, for once, his boredom is sated. Finally, he has the honor to do what many have wanted for years now: kill Light, Kira, god, or any combination of the three. 

Maybe he was bad. Perhaps he _was_ true evil personified, the devil on earth instead of a boy blessed by the heavens and destined to change the world for the better. Then, would his death mean there is far less evil in the world?

Light forms a smile as wide as he can muster. This day— it is truly wonderful, for the world he has created. 

He breathes, on the middle step of the stairwell, on the border between humanity and godhood. He imagines that his humanity died when his father did; and he never did quite reach godhood, did he? If he did, he would not be here, dying the same way so many criminals did. Not human, not god. 

Light breathes, on the stairwell, within the emptiest warehouse in the world. No one will know he is Kira; everyone who does would never spill the secret, and everyone who did does not remember, or is dead. 

He makes a mental note, for a new personal goal. When he is god, he would make sure no one dies this lonely. 


End file.
